Clinical Cases

Clinical History

A 14 year old girl was seen in clinic after an injury whilst playing rugby. Although her description was vague, she intimated that a valgus stress had been put on her left leg and described being tackled in rugby practice. She fell on her left knee and heard an audible cracking or ‘pop’ sound, experiencing immediate pain and swelling of the joint. She had no significant past medical history and was taking no regular medication.

Abstract

Case presentation: A 22 year old male with a 3-year history of impaired left ventricular function and a past medical history of anthracycline-treated acute myeloid leukaemia was admitted with symptoms of worsening cardiac failure. The patient’s symptoms progressed over 3 months, and included diminished exercise tolerance, orthopnoea, paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnoea, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhoea. He also described an acute nocturnal episode of severe chest pain, shortness of breath, and involuntary twitching, beginning in the left hand and progressing proximally. The patient was diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy - a well-documented side effect of anthracycline therapy.

Conclusion: The exact cause of the patient’s nocturnal episode could not be established, but the features closely resembled those of a Jacksonian seizure. Here, the authors suggest the possibility of an acute arrhythmia secondary to cardiomyopathy, resulting in reduced cerebral perfusion, and a Jacksonian seizure.

Coronary artery anomalies (CAAs) are present in 1-1.96% of the population [1,2]. The clinical significance of single CAAs differs depending on the course of the artery. Those that take an inter-arterial (malignant) course, between the aorta and pulmonary artery, can present with syncope or sudden death [1,3]. This is attributed to the myocardial ischaemia that ensues when the single coronary artery is compressed between high-flow structures in systole.

Abstract

A 32-year-old from Turkey (Kurdistan province) presented with a 4-year history of recurrent, severe, vague abdominal pain requiring numerous hospitalizations. The pain was non-radiating, dull and constricting in nature with acute onset. There were no associated symptoms apart from constipation. His C-reactive protein and white cell count were always raised during these acute episodes. The pain resolved spontaneously without any specific treatment. He was completely well in between these acute episodes. Investigations including diagnostic laparoscopy, endoscopy and colonoscopy, CT scans and porphyria and infection screens were performed and were found to be negative / normal. Subsequent analysis of the MEFV gene detected two pathogenic variants (Met680IGC and Glu148Gln) on exon 2 and 10 and a diagnosis of familial Mediterranean fever was made. He had no further acute episodes after colchicine treatment was initiated.

Mrs X, a 38 year old thoroughbred race horse breeder, presented to the medical admissions unit (MAU) after referral from her district general hospital (DGH) with a worsening cough, shortness of breath and a swollen right arm.